Word origins

• starkHard, firm; obdurate.
• hutA small, simple one-storey dwelling or shelter, often with just one room, and generally built of readily available local materials.
• refusalThe act of refusing.
• weaverA person who weaves; especially, one who weaves cloth for a living.
• secularNot specifically religious; lay or civil, as opposed to clerical.
• majestyThe quality of being impressive, great, dignified, powerful, sovereign, or any combination thereof.
• pewterAn alloy of approximately 93–98% tin and 1–2% copper, and the balance of antimony.
• distressPhysical or emotional discomfort, suffering, or alarm, particularly of a more acute nature.
• notablyAs a pointed example; in a notable manner.
• garmentA single article of clothing.
• razorA keen-edged knife of peculiar shape, used in shaving the hair from the face or other parts of the body.
• coughSometimes followed by up: to force (something) out of the lungs or throat by pushing air from the lungs through the glottis (causing a short, explosive sound), and out through the mouth.
• backwardsSynonym of backward; see usage notes there.
• pleaAn appeal, petition, urgent prayer or entreaty.
• stretchingThe act by which something is stretched.
• abundantFully sufficient; found in copious supply; in great quantity; overflowing.
• accompanyTo go with or attend as a companion or associate; to keep company with; to go along with.
• forecastingA forecast or prediction.
• preyThat which is or may be seized by animals to be devoured.
• depositionThe removal of someone from office.
• zodiacThe belt-like region of the celestial sphere, approximately eight degrees north and south of the ecliptic, which includes the apparent path of the sun, moon, and visible planets.
• pavementA paved surface; a hard covering on the ground.
• fencingThe art or sport of duelling with swords, especially with the 17th- to 18th-century European dueling swords and the practice weapons descended from them (sport fencing).
• arteryAny of the muscular- and elastic-walled blood vessels forming part of the circulation system by which blood is conveyed away from the heart regardless of its oxygenation status; see pulmonary artery.
• inletA body of water let into a coast, such as a bay, cove, fjord or estuary.
• rubAn act of rubbing.
• violateTo break or disregard (a rule or convention).
• stealthThe attribute or characteristic of acting in secrecy, or in such a way that the actions are unnoticed or difficult to detect by others.
• nessA promontory; a cape or headland. (Frequently used as a suffix in placenames.)
• canopyA high cover providing shelter, such as a cloth supported above an object, particularly over a bed.
• glossA surface shine or luster.
• whipA lash; a pliant, flexible instrument, such as a rod (commonly of cane or rattan) or a plaited or braided rope or thong (commonly of leather) used to create a sharp "crack" sound for directing or herding animals.
• porchA covered entrance to a building, whether taken from the interior, and forming a sort of vestibule within the main wall, or projecting without and with a separate roof. A porch often has chair(s), table(s) and swings.
• pertinentA right that attaches to land, in Scots law.
• collegiateOf, or relating to a college, or college students; collegial.
• fletcherOne who fletches or feathers arrows.
• handfulThe amount that a hand will grasp or contain.
• eatenHaving been consumed by eating.
• exciteTo stir the emotions of; to cause to feel excitement.
• believingThe act or process of having faith, trust, or confidence in.
• SalisburyA surname.
• steepOf a near-vertical gradient; of a slope, surface, curve, etc. that proceeds upward or downward at an angle approaching vertical.
• creedThat which is believed; accepted doctrine, especially religious doctrine; a particular set of beliefs; any summary of principles or opinions professed or adhered to.
• throneAn impressive seat used by a monarch, often on a raised dais in a throne room and reserved for formal occasions.
• plumpHaving a full and rounded shape; chubby, somewhat overweight.
• expireTo die.
• midstA place in the middle of something; may be used of a literal or metaphorical location.
• bornecarried, supported.
• forgiveTo pardon (someone); to waive any negative feeling towards or desire for punishment or retribution against.
• readableLegible, possible to read or at least decipher.
• almanacA book or table listing nautical, astronomical, astrological or other events for the year; sometimes, but not essentially, containing historical and statistical information.
• ayAh! alas! Expressing anger, alarm, frustration, pain, etc.
• slayerA killer; a murderer; someone who slays.
• testerA canopy over a bed.
• torchA stick of wood or plant fibres twisted together, with one end soaked in a flammable substance such as resin or tallow and set on fire, which is held in the hand, put into a wall bracket, or stuck into the ground, and used chiefly as a light source.
• boutA period of something, especially one painful or unpleasant, like an illness.
• hankA coil or loop of something, especially twine, yarn, or rope.
• negligenceThe state of being negligent.
• unclearAmbiguous; liable to more than one interpretation.
• helperOne who helps; an aide; assistant; auxiliary.
• CarlisleA city in and the county town of Cumbria, and formerly of the county of Cumberland, and in Cumberland unitary authority since 2023, northwestern England (OS grid ref NY3955).
• steppingThe act of taking a step.
• appetiteA desire to eat food or consume drinks.
• piperA musician who plays a pipe.
• honorableBehaving in a manner that shows honor; decent, having integrity.
• wealthyPossessing financial wealth; rich.
• skinnyThin, generally in a negative sense (as opposed to slim, which is thin in a positive sense).
• endowmentSomething with which a person or thing is endowed.
• defenderSomeone who defends people or property.
• wretchAn unhappy, unfortunate, or miserable person.
• sunlightAll the electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun; especially, that in the visible spectrum and that bathes the Earth.
• woA falconer's call to a hawk.
• conveyTo move (something) from one place to another.
• governTo make and administer the public policy and affairs of; to exercise sovereign authority in.
• featherA branching, hair-like structure that grows on the bodies of birds, used for flight, swimming, protection and display.
• fondHaving a liking or affection (for).
• soreCausing pain or discomfort; painfully sensitive.
• sixteenThe cardinal number occurring after fifteen and before seventeen, represented in Arabic numerals as 16 and in Roman numerals as XVI.
• intrusionThe forcible inclusion or entry of an external group or individual; the act of intruding.
• sicknessThe quality or state of being sick or diseased; illness; an illness.
• underneathBelow; in a place beneath.
• prohibitTo forbid, disallow, or proscribe officially; to make illegal or illicit.
• noelA kind of hymn, or canticle, of mediaeval origin, sung in honor of the birth of Christ; a Christmas carol.
• tenthThe ordinal numeral form of ten; next in order after that which is ninth.
• eternityExistence without end, infinite time.
• kindlyHaving a kind personality; kind, warm-hearted, sympathetic.
• revealingInformative; providing new information.
• resurrectionThe act of arising from the dead and becoming alive again.
• decreeAn edict or law.
• torA craggy outcrop of rock on the summit of a hill, created by the erosion and weathering of rock.
• gambleA bet or wager.
• gravelSmall fragments of rock, used for laying on the beds of roads and railways, and as ballast.
• shutterOne who shuts or closes something.
• ambitiousHaving or showing ambition; wanting a lot of power, honor, respect, superiority, or other distinction.
• notoriousOf a person or entity: generally or widely known for something negative; infamous.
• residueThat which persists or remains following the removal or elimination of other elements.
• thriceThree times.
• whistlerSomeone or something that whistles, or who plays a whistle as a musical instrument.
• mushroomAny of the fleshy fruiting bodies of fungi typically produced above ground on soil or on their food sources (such as decaying wood).
• scentA distinctive smell.